from ARMANDO DOMINGOS in Maputo, Mozambique
MAPUTO, (CAJ News) – THE International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is concerned at the combined impact of conflict and extreme weather in northern Mozambique.
This combination is threatening public health in Cabo Delgado, the province that is the epicentre of the Islamist insurgency that has displaced over 800 000 people.
Massive displacement has put an enormous strain on existing water and health facilities, some of which were previously damaged by extreme weather events.
As a result, a concerning shortage of safe water, sanitation and health services is a looming threat to public health for displaced people and host communities.
“A lot of people depend on this type of water and this is definitely not to any standards of public health,” said Dominik Stillhart, director of operations for the ICRC.
The envoy has completed a three-day visit to Cabo Delgado.
“I think it is very important to pay very serious attention to what is happening here, especially in the north of Mozambique,” Stillhart said.
Recurring and more frequent cyclones and floods have damaged health and water facilities in the Southern African country.
Cholera is also escalating.
The number of cholera cases in Cabo Delgado at the beginning of August 2021 was 3 400, compared to approximately 2 200 from the same period last year.
ICRC is working with local authorities to rehabilitate existing water and health infrastructures, as well as build new ones on the mainland as well as on the islands
Thousands have been killed since the Islamist insurgency began in 2017
– CAJ News